Observation of terrestrial mammals suggests that they can follow the wind (anemotaxis), but the sensory cues underlying this ability have not been studied. We identify a significant contribution to anemotaxis mediated by whiskers (vibrissae), a modality previously studied only in the context of direct tactile contact. Five rats trained on a five-alternative forced-choice airflow localization ta...

This study was undertaken to determine whether the resistance to nasal airflow and differences in oronasal distribution of ventilation at rest and during exercise alter the pattern of breathing. We observed six normal subjects, six patients with symptomatic allergic rhinitis, and six patients with asymptomatic bronchial asthma (three men and three women in each group), all of whom had normal pu...

Current treatment options are successful in 40% to 60% of children with persistent obstructive sleep apnea after adenotonsillectomy. Residual obstruction assessments are largely subjective and do not clearly define multilevel obstruction. We endeavor to use computational fluid dynamics to perform virtual surgery and assess airflow changes in patients with Down syndrome and persistent obstructiv...

Rhinomanometry provides a means to quantify the nasal airway in terms of its conductive efficiency by use of the inverse or resistance to airflow. In samples of 21 male and 26 female subjects, nasal airway resistance was compared with a number of form measurements and the coefficients of correlation were calculated. Statistical significance was found in some of the relationships with nasal airw...

The two papers in this issue from the Osler Chest Unit at Oxford University [1, 2] exploit the fact that the breathing pattern in humans is affected in characteristic ways when the pulmonary airways are obstructed. MORRIS et al. [1] examined the latter part of the tidal expiratory flow pattern in patients with varying degrees of airflow obstruction and found that the expiratory time constant co...

THE RESPIRATORY SYSTEM is composed of a conducting part and a respiratory part. The conducting airways, i.e., the trachea, bronchi, and bronchioles, differ in architecture. Both trachea and bronchi are surrounded by rings of hyaline cartilage for support, whereas the bronchiolar wall does not contain any cartilage and therefore tends to collapse in response to changes in intrapleural or airway ...

INTRODUCTION Performing lung function test in geriatric patients has never been an easy task. With well-established evidence indicating impaired small airway function and air trapping in patients with geriatric COPD, utilizing forced oscillation technique (FOT) as a supplementary tool may aid in the assessment of lung function in this population. AIMS To study the use of FOT in the assessment...

The resistance of the airways to the airflow through them depends on the radius, length and number of the airways. It has long been apparent (1, 2) that the bronchi are distended as well as lengthened in the inspiratory position of the lung. These two changes in the dimensions of these airways would have opposite effects on their resistance to airflow, lengthening increasing resistance and wide...

This article focuses on the tools that are available to assess nasal airflow, their utility in clinical practice, and comparison between them. Assessment of the nasal airway traditionally relied on history and physical examination only. Recently, tools have been developed that aid the physician in completing an assessment by measurement of parameters that are directly or indirectly related to a...

BACKGROUND Patients with obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) have a number of upper airway structural abnormalities which may influence the resistance of the oral airway to airflow. There have been no systematic studies of the flow dynamics of the oral cavity in such patients. METHODS Inspiratory oral airway resistance to airflow (RO) was measured in 13 awake patients with OSA in both the upright ...